Template switch arrangement for use in connection with multi-operation copying machines



Jan. 12, 1960 F. HUGGLER 2,920,519

TEMPLATE swrrcx-x ARRANGEMENT FOR USE IN CONNECTION WITH MULTI-OPERA'IION COPYING MACHINES Filed Nov. 22. 1955 1 a Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig. 1

I I v INVENTOR. F/P/A-Pfi/(H 1 /0 BY WM Jan. 12, 1960 HUGGLER 2,920,519

TEMPLATE SWITCH ARRANGEMENT FOR usE IN CONNECTION WITH MULTI-OPERATION COPYING MACHINES Filed Nov. 22. 1955 :s Sheets-Sheet 2 Jan. 12, 1960 F. HUGGLER 2,920,519

TEMPLATE swrrcn ARRANGEMENT FOR USE IN CONNECTION WITH MULTI-OPERATION COPYING MACHINES Filed Nov. 22. 1955 s Sheets-Sheet s INVENTOR. FE/fP Y/(l/ #09515;

United States Patent Office 2,920,519 Patented Jan. 12, 1960 TEMPLATE SWITCH ARRANGEMENT FOR USE IN CONNECTION WITH MULTI-OPERATION COPY- lNG MACHINES Friedrich Huggler, Schaifhausen, Switzerland, assignor to Georg Fischer Aktiengesellschaft, Schalfhausen, Switzerland, a Swiss company Application November 22, 1955, Serial No. 548,464 Claims priority, application Switzerland December 7, 1954 3 Claims. (Cl. 82-14) v relation to a feeler member controlling the cutting, turning or other action of the tool of the machine.

There is already known a number of different constructions which effect swinging or pivoting of the template bar carrier in such a manner as to enable a plurality of cutting, turning or like operations of diverse types to be performed one after the other on one and the same workpiece. Such known arrangements usually are either manually actuated or they constitute parts of hydraulic or electric control means frequently used in combination with automatically operating multi-cut machines. In all of these arrangements, however, the shifting of the templates occurs independently of the shape or form of the workpiece being machined.

It is, therefore, an important object of the present invention to provide means facilitating variation of the operation of a copying lathe or like machine by means of a plurality of templates of diverse contours in such a manner that the shift from one template, correspond ing to one type of operation of the lathe tool or like element, to another template, corresponding to another type of operation of said lathe tool or like element, is effected substantially automatically upon retraction of the tool or like element from the workpiece.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of means ensuring complete safety, during shifting from one template of a multi-operation lathe to another, both for the tool of said lathe and for the workpiece being machined thereby, thus reducing material wastage while enhancing the useful life of said tool, whereby the cost of producing a finished article from said workpiece is substantially lessened.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide means affording highly efficacious and thoroughly reliable control systems for use in connection with multiple cut operation-regulating template arrangements of copying machine tools, such as lathes, cutting and milling machines, and the like, said systems being constructed to prevent accidental and undesired displacement of one templatefrom its tool-regulating position and substitution of another template in said tool-regulating position as long as the workpiece "is being machined.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide means contributing to control systems of the aforesaid type which permit substantially automatic switching from one template'to another during interruptions inthe machining operations in direct accordance with the shape or form of the workpiece and with the type of operation to be performed thereon.

More specifically, the present invention is characterized by the fact that contact or sensing elements are provided which are positioned for actuation by the workpiece and which control adjustment means arranged to bring a template corresponding to the disposition of the workpiece into alignment with a copying feeler member connected to the tool employed in machining the workpiece.

These and other objects of the invention will become further apparent from the following detailed description, reference being made to the accompanying drawings showing preferred embodiments of the invention.

In the drawings:

Fig, 1 is a schematic front elevational view of a copying lathe constructed in accordance with the present invention, a workpiece arranged thereon in position for a first type of machining operation;

Fig. 2 shows said workpiece in position for a second type of operation;

Fig. 3 is a schematic illustration, partly in section, of one embodiment of a control system for the template switching arrangement according to the present invention;

' Fig. 4 is a schematic illustration of a second embodiment of said control system;

Fig. 4a is a perspective view of the invention; and

Fig. 5 is a schematic illustration of a third embodiment of said'control system.

While there is shown and described herein certain spectific structure embodying the invention, it will be manifest to those skilled in the art that various modifications and rearrangements of the parts may be made Without departing from the scope of the invention, and that the same is not limited to the particular form herein shown and described, except in so far as indicated by the appended claims.

' Referring now more particularly to Fig. 1, the copying lathe there illustrated consists of standards or legs 1 and 2 an upper cross arm 3 and a bed 4, the latter supporting a carriage or saddle 6 for displacement parallel to the axis of rotation 5 of a workpiece 10. The workpiece 10 is supported at one end on a headstock 7 by means of a suitable chuck 9 and at its other end on a tailstock 8 longitudinally displaceable along the upper cross arm 3. V

Displaceably mounted in guideways 6a of the carriage 6 is a copying tool slide 11 which supports a tool 12, e.g., a cutting or turning tool, the displacements of said slide being effected by means of a suitable hydraulic or electric control system. To this end, there is provided a feeler lever 13 pivotally arranged on a pin 13a and connected at one end, for example, to a control valve (not shown) and provided at its other end with a feeler element 14 ,for sensing, during longitudinal movements of the carriage 6, the contours of one of the two template bars 15 and 25 (Fig. 3).

A tiltable template holder or carrier 17 is pivotally mounted, by means of oppositely extending pins or like pivot elements 16, in suitable bearings (not shown) arranged in the standards 1 and 2. The template carrier 17 is thus seen to be arranged for pivotal or tilting movement between two operating positions for the templates 15 and 25.

A pump 18 draws oil or like pressure fluid from a reservoir 19 and feeds the oil or fluid through a conduit 20 into a valve housing 21. A slide-valve member 22 is longitudinally and reciprocally displaceable in the housing '21, the displacements of the valve member 22 being eifected, respectively, by electromagnets 23 and 24 an ranged adjacent oppositeends of said valve member.

A tiltable lever 26, pivoted at one end about a pin 26a and acting under the biasing force of a spring 27, extends into a groove or channel 26 formed on the valve member 22, whereby the latter may be stationarily retained in either one of its two end positions to which it may be moved by the corresponding electromagnet 23 or 24. A stop or abutment 28 located centrally within the valve housing 21 limits the extent of movement of the valve member 22.

A conduit 29 leads from the valve housing 21 to one end of a cylinder 30 in which a piston 32 is reciprocally displaceable. A spring 31 bears on that face of said piston which is remote from said one end of the cylinder 30 and biases the piston toward said end. Connected to the piston 32 is a piston rod 33 which extends out of the cylinder 30 in a direction away from said cylinder end and is connected to a tilting or bell-crank lever 34 oscillatably mounted on an axle 35 and connected to the tiltable template carrier 17 by means of a link 36.

Arranged on the upper cross arm 3 of the lathe is a switch housing 37 which maybe adjusted vertically and horizontally along said arm by any suitable means (not shown). A guide rod 38 extends through the housing 37 and carries at its lower end an operation-sensing element constituted by a contact roller 39, the rod 38 being located above the axis of the workpiece and vertically displaceable relative thereto.

Also located in the housing 37 is a reversible microswitch 40 rockable about axle 40c and having two contacts 40a and 40b and an actuating element 40d which latter is displaceable by means of a suitably shaped cam surface provided on an abutment ring 45 fixed by means of the screw 45a to the rod 38 and biased toward the bottom of the housing 37 by a spring 44. The microswitch 40 constitutes one portion of the control or adjustment system for the templates, the system further including micro-switches 41 and 42, a relay 43a and a relay-operated switch 43, all operatively connected to the electromagnets 23 and 24.

The operation of the template switching or shifting arrangement illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3 is as follows:

As may be seen from Figs. 1 and 2, the workpiece has a collar 46 and is to be subjected to two different machining operations, schematically designed by the parallelogram-like boxes I and II. At the beginning'it will be assumed that the operation I is to be carried out and that the operation II has just been completed. The tool slide 11 has been moved to its retracted position shown in Fig. 3, but the tilta-ble template carrier 17 is still in a position (not shown) in which the template 25 1s operatively located above or otherwise adjacent and aligned with the copying feeler member 14.

At this time the left-hand contact of the micro-switch 42 is closed, and the valve member 22 is in its right-hand position. Concurrently, an abutment 47 provided on the tool slide 11 has moved the micro-switch 41 to the left and closed it, thus energizing the relay 43a.

The workpiece 10 is now placed into the position shown in Fig. 1. As a result, the contact roller 39, which senses the orientation of the workpiece relative to the tool, for example, does not engage the collar 46 and the spring 44 biases the abutment ring 45 and rod 38 downwardly in the housing 37, thus closing the left-hand side 40a of the micro-switch 40 as shown in Fig. 3. The roller 39 is located above the rotational axis 5 of the workpiece but does not contact the latter (Figs. 1 and 3).

Accordingly, an electric circuit is completed from the positive terminal of a suitable power line through the left-hand contact 40a of the micro-switch 40, the coil of the electromagnet 23, the left-hand contact of the microswitch 42 and the relay-operated switch 43 to the negative terminal of the power line.

Under the aforesaid conditions, the electromagnet 23 draws the valve member 22 to the left, overcoming the biasing force of the retaining spring 27, whereby oil, or

any other suitable fluid or hydraulic liquid, flows through the conduit 20, the valve housing 21 and the conduit 29 into the right-hand end of the cylinder 30 to displace the piston 32 to the left against the force of the spring 31. This efiects a clockwise pivoting of the bell-crank lever 34 and, accordingly, a counter-clockwise tilting of the template carrier 17 to bring the latter into the position shown in Fig. 3, so that the template 15 is now located above (or otherwise adjacent) the feeler member 14.

The retaining lever 26, through the force of the spring 27, now holds the valve member 22 in its newly attained position, while the micro-switch 42 is moved by the carrier 17 to the position shown in Fig. 3.

'When the tool slide 11 is thereafter advanced from the position shown in Fig. 3 toward the workpiece 10, the actuating element 41a of the micro-switch 41 is released from the abutment 47 and moves to the right, thereby opening the micro-switch 41, deenergizing the relay 43a and opening the switch 43. Consequently, no current can now flow to the electromagnet 24 and, since shifting of the valve member 22 is prevented, accidental tilting of the template carrier 17 from its present position is likewise prevented as long as the tool slide 11 is in its working position, i.e., during performance of .the machining operation I. v

This control or interlock system, thus, acts as a safety arrangement which would remain unimpaired even if splinters, chips or other foreign bodies were to become lodged between the workpiece 10 and the contact roller 39.

The operation I having been completed and itbeing desired to perform the operation II, the tool slide 11 is retracted to close the micro-switch 41 and energize the relay 43a to close the switch 43. The workpiece 10 is now shifted to the position shown in Fig. 2, in which the collar 46 of the workpiece contacts the sensing roller 39 and displaces the latter upwardly, simultaneously displacing the ring 45 upwardly against the force of the spring 44 in the switch housing 37.

The actuating member 40d of the micro-switch 40 is thus cammed to the right to close the right-hand con tact 40b of the micro-switch 40. An electric circuit is now completed from the positive terminal of the power line through the right-hand contact 40b of the microswitch 40, the coil of the electromagnet 24, the righthand contact of the microswitch 42 and the switch 43 to the negative terminal of the power line.

Under these operating conditions, the valve member 22 is displaced to the right by the electromagnet 24 to permit the oil to be forced, through the action of the spring 31 on the piston 32, from the cylinder 30 through the conduit 29, the valve housing 21 and the return conduit 20 into the reservoir 19. As the piston 32 and piston rod 33 move to the right under the action of the spring 31, the bell-crank lever 34 is pivoted in a counterclockwise direction and tilts the template carrier 17 in a clockwise direction to locate the template 25 above the feeler member 14,

Simultaneously, the right-hand contact of the microswitch 42 is opened to deenergize the electromagnet 24. The lever 26 is now tilted to the right (not shown in Fig. 3) and through the force of the spring 27 retains the valve member 22 in its right-hand position (also not shown in Fig. 3).

As soon as the tool slide is again advanced toward the workpiece to initiate the operation II, the switch 41 is opened, the relay 43a deenergized and the switch 43 opened. Thus it will be seen, as in the preceding operation I, that as long as the tool slide 11 is in its advanced position and the workpiece 10 is being machined, accidental tilting of the template carrier 17 and consequent switching or shifting of templates in mid-operation are rendered impossible.

Turning now to Figs. 4 and 4a, it will be seen that aoccrdingte'this embodimen'tbf the'inventi'cin sensing element 'a'ctuat'e's an electric switch arrangement with the aid of which shiftingor interchangingfof the templates may be electromagneticallyefiected. For purposes of simplicity, those elements of the system shown 'in Figs. 4 and 4a which are identical with parts shown in Figs. 1 to 3 bear the same reference numerals as said parts.

-More particularly, a switch housing '50, which is Vertically and horizontally displaceable along 'the upper cross arm 3 (not shown in Fig. 4) of the lathe, supports a tumbler switch 51 pivoted at 51a which is connected :to and actuatable by a rocker 53 pivotal about an axle '52. -At the start of the machining operation II, which is illustrated in Figs. 4 and 4a, the rocker 53' assumes the'position shown in Figs. 4 and 4a due to the location, i.e., orientation relative to the tool '12, of the collar 46 of the workpiece 10. p

The tool slide 11 is, at this time, still in its retracted position (corresponding to the position shown in Fig. '3) to which it was displaced during mounting of the workpiece between the chuck 9 of the headstock 7 and the spindle 56 of the tailstock 8, whereby the micro-switch 41 is closed by means of the abutment 47. The template 25 must now be brought to an operative position above the feeler member 14.

With the tumbler switch 51 in the position shown, an electric circuit is completed from the positive terminal of the power line through the right-hand contact 54 of the switch 51, the magnet coil 23 and the switch 41 to the negative terminal of the power line. The connecting rod 33' (corresponding to the piston rod 33 in Fig. 3) is moved to the left in Fig. 4 by the magnet 23, and the template carrier 17 is thus tilted through the intermediary of the bell-crank lever 34 in a counterclockwise direction to position the template 25 operatively adjacent 'the feelermember 14. As will be seen from Fig. 4a, the template carrier 17 is supported over members 16 in two supports 17a mounted on lathe bed 4.

When the tool slide' ll thereafter advanced toward the workpiece 10, the switch 41 is opened and the magnet 23 deenergized. The spring 27 holds the carrier 17 in its adjusted position'by means of an auxiliary lever 34a in Fig. 4a. Consequently, as long as the workpiece is being cut, turned or otherwise machined, accidental tilting or shifting of the template carrier is prevented.

It will, of course, be readily seen from Figs. 4 and 4a that for the performance of machining operation I, the workpiece is arranged between the chuck 9 and spindle 56 in the manner shown in Fig. 1. The rocker 53 will then be tilted in a direction opposite to that shown and, when the tool slide 11 is retracted, an electric circuit is completed from the positive power line terminal through the left hand contact 55 of the switch 51, the electromagnet coil 24 and the switch 41 to the negative power line terminal. This will cause the rod 53 to be drawn to the right, tilting the carrier 17 in a .clockwise direction and disposing the template opcratively above or adjacent the feeler member 14. Here, 109, as soon as the tool slide 11 is advanced, accidental ,shifting of templates is. inhibited.

A slightly different embodiment of the control sys- ;tem is shown in Fig. 5, in which the construction is -such that the template changing arrangement, which ;is substantially like that of Fig. 4, is actuated in response -to the position of the tailstock spindle 56. The tumbler switch 51 employed in this system is likewise iden- -;.tical with that illustrated in Fig. 4.

In this embodiment of the invention, a cam or abut- ;ment 58 is arranged on the tailstock spindle 56 for en- ;gagement with a switch 57. When it is desired to po- .-sition the template 15 above the feeler member 14 to carry out the illustrated machmhgaperation I, the tailstock spindle '56 is "moved to arighF-hand position (not shown in Fig. 5), whereby the switch 57 is closed through the abutment or cam 58 provided on the tailstock spindle. The rocker -53 is positioned as shown in .Fig. 5 in accordance with operation 1, whereby the wise dir'ec'ition through the intermediary of the connect- "ing rod 33' and the bell-crank lever 34 so that the template 15 is moved into an operative position above the 'fe'eler member 14. As before, the spring 27 retains the template carrier 17 in its adjusted position.

Upon subsequent movement of the tailstock spindle :to the left into the position shown in Fig. 5 to support the workpiece 10 for turning or cutting by the tool 12, the switch 57 is opened and the circuit broken. Again, itis not possible, by virtue of the action of this safety arrangement, to shift the template carrier 17 as long as tailstock. of the lathe.

'Sh'ould it now be desired to carry-out machining operation II, the spindle 56 is again retracted to close switch 57. Upon tilting of the rocker '53, in response to the location of the collar 46 of the workpiece 10, to a positicn such as shown in Fig. 4, the electromagnet 23 will be energized through closing of the right-hand contact 54 of the switch 51 to shift the template 15 to its operative position above the fee'ler member 14. Thereafter, gripping of the workpiece between the chuck 9 and spindle 56 will prevent accidental displacement or shifting of the template carrier 17 due to the opening of the switch 57.

From the above it will be seen that the invention, in effect, provides a template switching arrangement for use with a copying machine intended "to perform successively a plurality of different operations on one and the same workpiece in accordance with respective control contours or surfaces of a like plurality of templates, which arrangement generally includes means for sensing the orientation of said workpiece relative to a movable member forming a part of said machine, and means responsive to said sensing means for switching or shifting into an operationcontrolling position that oneo'f said templates whose control contours correspond-to the particularorientation of the workpiece. The movable member may, for example, be a tool holder (see Figs; '3 and 4) or an element arranged to support the workpiece (see Fig. 5).

Additionally, safety means may be provided and so arranged for actuation bythe movable member that only upon retraction of the latter from the workpiece can ac tuation of the template-shifting or switching means be operated by the sensing means.

It will further be realized that the sensing means (39 and 53) and the feeler means (1314), both of which involve physical contact between the sensing element and the object being sensed, may be replaced by suitable photoelectric, magnetic or electro-mechanical means with out departure from the spirit of the invention. Likewise, the hydraulic means of Fig. 3 may be replaced not only by means, such as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, but also by a self-synchronous motor-generator system, by a photoelectrically operated follow-up system and like arrangements.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent, is:

1. A multi-operation copying machine comprising holder means arranged for advancement toward and retraction from a workpiece, said holder means supporting a tool engageable with a workpiece, a pivotally mounted template carrier having a plurality of templates mounted thereon, said templates having control contours corre- ,sponding to respective types of machining operations to 'be performed on a workpiece, feeler means for said templates operatively connected to said holder means for imparting to said holder means and a tool supported thereby, upon advance of said holder means toward said operative until retraction of said holder means from said workpiece.

2. A copying machine for performing a plurality of operations on a workpiece comprising movable means advanceable toward and retractable from a workpiece and including holder means for supporting a tool during operations on a workpiece, a template carrier having a plurality of templates mounted thereon, said templates having control contours corresponding to the operations to be performed on a workpiece, feeler means for said templates operable to control said operations in accordance with said contours, actuating means connected to said template carrier for moving said templates into position for engagement by said feeler means, sensing means sensing orientation of a workpiece relative to said movable means, other means for operating said actuating means by said sensing means to thereby bring into said position for engagement by said feeler means that one of said templates corresponding to said orientation, safety means including interlock means operatively connected to saidactuating means. and responsive to location of said movable means with respect to a workpiece for rendering said actuating means inoperative by inhibiting operation of said actuating means by said sensing means upon advancement of said movable means toward a workpiece and for enabling operation of said actuating means by said sensing means upon retraction of said movable means from a workpiece, and means operatively interconnecting said feeler means with said holder means for imparting to the holder and to a tool supported thereby, upon advancement of said holder means toward a workpiece, operational movement corresponding to motions of said feeler means when in engagement with a respective one of said contoured templates.

3. A copying machine for performmg a plurality of operations on a workpiece comprising movable means advanceable toward the retractable from a workpiece and including holder means for supporting a tool during opv 8 I era tions on a workpiece, a template carrier having a pluralrty of templates mounted thereon, said templates having control contours corresponding to the operations to be performed on a workpiece, feeler means for saidtemplates operable to control said operations in accordance with said contours, actuating means connected to said template carrier for moving said templates into position for engagement by said feeler means, sensing means sens- .mg orientation of a workplece relative to said movable means, other means for operating said actuating means by said sensing means to thereby bring ino said position for engagement by said feeler means that one of said templates corresponding to said orientation, safety means including interlock means operatively connected to said actuating means and responsive to location of said movable means with respect to a workpiece for rendering said actuating means inoperative by inhibiting operation of said actuating means by said sensing means upon advancement of said movable means toward a workpiece and for enabhng operation of said actuating means by said sensing means upon retraction of said movable means i from a workpiece, means operatively interconnecting said feeler means with said holder means for imparting to the holder' and to a tool supported thereby, upon advancement of said holder means toward a workpiece, operational movements correspondingto motions of said feeler' 'means when in engagement with a respective one of said contoured templates, said sensing means including said 'actuating means com-- electric switch means, prising electromagnet means electrically connected. to and controlled by said switch means, and an element operatively connected to said templates and arranged for reciprocal displacement by said electromagnet means upon energization thereof in response to operation of said switch means. 1

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

